One of the big truths about the world described in the opening pages of our Bibles is that creation is ordered. The Spirit of God brooded over the waters and created life. The life that the Spirit created is vibrant, dynamic, and diverse, but it is not random or chaotic. It is ordered. We see this order communicated in various ways throughout Genesis 1-2. Clear boundaries for land and waters and animals and people are given. Cycles and seasons of light and climate are set in motion through the orbits of the planets. The various parts of creation are all governed by specific patterns, rules, logic, and rhythms that God designed.
Interestingly, the Hebrew understanding of creation as ordered by a single God was quite unique in the Ancient Near East. For the most part, ancient creation narratives understood the earth as a place of chaos that mirrored the chaos in the realm of the divine where deities often fought each other for power and control.(1) In that kind of creation, peace is fleeting, and it comes to a human only by chance or by appeasing the right deity at the right time.
In contrast, the Hebrews understood that one God, Yahweh, was over all creation, and that following this God would naturally lead to peace and wellbeing because it was a matter of aligning oneself with the great organizer of all creation. That is the logic behind the starting point for Hebrew wisdom: the fear of the Lord (Psalm 111:10; Proverbs 1:7, 9:10; Job 28:28). If wisdom is understanding and living in light of the order – patterns, rules, logic, and rhythms – in creation, then the starting point for wisdom must be respecting the One who established all that order.
Although I can see how the creation stories in Genesis reveal a depth of order and organization in all things, I have to be honest that my life usually doesn’t feel that way. This leads me to ask a question: If creation is really ordered by God, then why does my life often feel so chaotic?
One possible answer that I’ve been meditating on lately is the tendency I have to forget a very important part of the creation story. The end. The part where God rested. This is the one part of the creation story that God repeatedly told Israel to remember, and I think that is because it’s so easy for us to forget it. Walter Brueggemann says that this final part of the creation story communicates something very important about God and human beings: “God is not a workaholic. God is not a Pharaoh. God does not keep jacking up production schedules. To the contrary, God rests, confident, serene, at peace. God’s rest, moreover, bestows on creatureliness a restfulness that contradicts the ‘drivenness’ of the system of Pharaoh.”(2)
When God told Israel to “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy,” God wasn’t giving them some arbitrary worship ritual. God was helping them know how to live in the world – restfully, the way God does. God was helping Israel to get the most out of life by reminding them to deliberately stop and not produce anything. How counter-cultural is that?! When I overcommit, work too hard, fixate on production, and neglect to take times for rest and rejuvenation and relaxation, I am not imitating God. To put it another way, a god who doesn’t rest and who is always working is not the God of the Bible. That’s a god I make in my own image. Thus, the call to remember the Sabbath stands as a warning to everyone that has become accustomed to a culture of Egypt – a culture of endless work, production, and commodification – not to impose their chaos-making ways back on to God.
So, how do I find rest and peace in a world that seems so chaotic? I start with remembering to stop working. That’s much easier said than done, but here are a few simple ways that I’m trying to actively resist our culture of anxiety and remember the Sabbath.
Stop and look up.
I recently listened to a podcast on “the science of awe,” and it talked about studies that show the benefits of taking a few minutes every day to look up at the sky. Looking up at the sky, especially when so much of our time is spent looking down on screens, is an act that reminds us of our place in the world. I get my bearings – I am not what I produce. I am on a little ball floating in a massive cosmos. I am small, but I am alive. The world around me is beautiful and full of life. I am connected to it all.Walk the dog.
A friend recently told me that they were trying to be more disciplined about taking daily walks because it was so helpful for them, and I realized I had fallen out of the habit of taking our dog, Whimsy, on long walks. I wonder if that has contributed to my feeling lately that life is so chaotic? Walking was not really considered an appropriate Sabbath activity for ancient Israel, but that makes sense in a culture where walking was the main form of transportation for most people. But, for me, walking is an excellent way for me to get back in sync with creation. Walking helps me to break away from production-oriented activities and just be present to my surroundings. It also helps me to pay attention to my body and my physical health.Hold a leaf.
It’s Fall in Eugene right now, and that means raking lots of leaves. Leaves can seem like a nuisance as they cover our walkways and clog our gutters, but they can also be a colorful and beautiful reminder of the rhythms that God has built into creation. Leaves turn colors because the trees are preparing for winter. The creation recognizes full well that there are times for growth and production and times for rest and rejuvenation. The leaves don’t really have a choice in recognizing this. It is just a part of their genetics. But, we humans do have a choice, and taking time to stop and hold a leaf helps me remember the importance of that choice.
Craig G. Bartholomew and Ryan P. O’Dowd, Old Testament Wisdom Literature: A Theological Introduction (Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 2011), 41-43.
Walter Brueggemann, Sabbath as Resistance: Saying No to a Culture of Now (Louisville: WJK Press, 2014), 29-30.
About the Author
Aaron is a passionate seeker of God and truth, and he enjoys encouraging others in their own pursuits of the same. He especially likes to think about how God is at work in the most ordinary and mundane aspects of our existence. He loves going on adventures to new places with his wife, Heather, and four kids and his perfect day would involve an excellent cup of coffee (or two!), a hike to somewhere beautiful and serene, and some good conversation over a pint at a warm pub. He currently serves as an adjunct instructor at Portland Seminary and co-leads the CitySalt Kids’ Ministry along with his wife, Heather.